cooling down the henna color?

[luthien_belewen]

I was wondering if it was possible to "cool" down the orange in henna'ed hair? I have naturally ashy blonde hair, and was wondering if I dyed over my henna with like a cool blonde or brown box dye--would that make much of a difference? Or could I even get results with a more burgundy color? I liked using Clairol Natural Instincts demi permanent dyes before I discovered henna. I read somewhere that it may fade very quickly because henna makes your hair smoother? Or would it just not show up very well?

I don't know, sometimes I get antsy with my hair. One day I'll love henna, but the next day, I wish I could have the simplicity of my natural color. Sometimes I would love to have deep, burgundy/auburn hair. But everyone says how they love my henna'ed color! It's a little too permanent for my whimsical ways lol!

[little_cherry]

If you're looking for a lovely brown, try Special Effects in wildflower- It's a purply shade but it will cancel out the orangy tones..and it isn't permanent. If you're looking for a more burgundy, you could apply special effects in the deepest red mixed with wildflower...neither will damage your hair like those box dyes. Strand testing is essential...when your roots grow out, you'd have to go down a different path, though.

[florenonite]

How many applications have you done? With many applications you might get a burgundy in most lights, but henna will always have some orange in the sunlight, it's just the nature of the beast.

[luthien_belewen]

I've done about two or three full head applications. Will the color get deeper if I leave it on longer? I usually leave it for about two hours.

[dropinthebucket]

I had heard that box dyes wash out over henna fairly quickly, because of the way henna binds to the keratin and closes up the cuticle. I think some members here have had good results with them anyway, though.

I went for Elumen, as my hair was already pretty damaged. It doesn't lift the cuticle, so doesn't damage hair - it's closer to Manic Panic, or Stargazer, in composition - but Goldwell has patented a new process where the dye molecule is attracted into the hair shaft by negative ionic charge (the culprit for static electricity in our hair). This makes Elumen a very long-lasting product, even over henna. I had very good results with it, and have been super happy with how it covered/cancelled out my henna to give me an ash brown colour. (Probl'y why I keep mentioning it whenever covering henna threads are posted - happy customer!! :)). Startup was a bit pricey, as I needed three shades to mix in order to get my desired colour, but in the long run, in terms of usage, it costed out the same or a bit less than Manic Panic. HTH

[Girl Detective]

I just henna'd my hair, found it too orange-y, and re-applied, this time adding a spoon of indigo to the mix (ratio: 5/6 henna, 1/6 indigo). It toned it down a great deal and made it more of a ruby-red tending burgundy. However, my hair was light/medium-brown to begin with

Two hours strikes me as a remarkably short amount of time. Everything I've read indicates that 6-12 hours is needed for maximum saturation. (many people don't want maximum, obviously, but it seems like the less dye, the more orange-y)

[luthien_belewen]

Yeah, I'm thinking that I'll just have to be more patient...next time I'm going to do a full application and leave it on for longer, maybe I can get a less orange shade then.

[redneckprincess]

you could try adding a LITTLE Indigo, or Buxus. to your mix...

[Girl Detective]

also, are you using lemon juice? because that inhibits the dye uptake. Try with warm water or tea. Other things that will strengthen the dye:

heat (try wrapping a layer of foil around the saran wrap, or balancing a puppy on your head)
not 'diluting' the henna too much with other spices etc
freezing it once dye release starts, and thawing it later (ruptures the plant cells so the dye gets out)

[kwaniesiam]

Don't put box dye over henna, the orange will still show through in sunlight and you'll probably only damage your hair or mess up the color. Try doing a few more applications or adding Amla to the mix, it is supposed to cool down the orange.

[dropinthebucket]

Oh, you're still going for a red shade! Sorry, I mis-read - thought you wanted to go back to brown. I'd agree - box dye over henna may just wash right out - better to go for indigo, or another henna app.

[bumblebums]

I thought amla was supposed to do what you are after.

http://www.hennacaravan.com/how/amla.html

And I quote:
"Amla powder may be added to henna and indigo paste to tone down or cool down the reddish color and create a richer, deeper brown color on hair.
As a dye:

Go Cool Brown. Take the red down by adding amla to henna or indigo/henna for a cooler toned down reddish brown and deep brown colors naturally! It will add shine and boost curl as well.

Mix henna or henna/indigo according to the directions.
Add amla to the paste once it’s ready to be used
Apply the amla spiked henna or henna/indigo paste to dry or damp hair in sections, completely coating al the hair down to the roots
Wrap your hair in a shower cap or plastic wrap and allow to soak in for 1-6 hours
Rinse and shampoo to remove any residue
Repeat: Monthly for healthy, thick and shiny brown-black locks "

[little_cherry]

I don't know, sometimes I get antsy with my hair. One day I'll love henna, but the next day, I wish I could have the simplicity of my natural color. Sometimes I would love to have deep, burgundy/auburn hair. But everyone says how they love my henna'ed color! It's a little too permanent for my whimsical ways lol!
If you're looking for a less permanent solution, Indigo is not for you, I'm afraid. Get some special effects in dark red (you can even mix it with black to get a darker red)..it's not permanent and you can play around with the colour much more.

[BelleBot]

Another vote here for a direct dye like manic panic, special effects, stargazer, directions dye etc. Unlike box dyes they doesn't contain any peroxide, and you have a huge range of colours to choose from, and they wash out/fade out in 3-8 weeks depending on the colour and how you care for your hair. So they're a good non damaging option if you like switching colours.

Personally I find direct dyes stick better over henna and don't wash out as quick. You could still make out the streaks I put in over henna with crazy colour in cyclamen (dark pink/purple) and that was back in April, so it's lasted 4 months even with henna applied over the top.

You can also do glosses with direct dyes to get a subtler colour if you just want a tint. So perhaps mix a pink colour with lots of conditioner to help cool down the henna and counteract the orange. :)

[luthien_belewen]

Sitting right now with a full head of henna (Punjabi Prime), as I still want a red shade, just less orange. I will try to post pics of the results.

Where can I find dyes like Special Effects and Manic Panic? They sound fun...but not sure if I've seen them around in the store?

[HairColoredHair]

Sitting right now with a full head of henna (Punjabi Prime), as I still want a red shade, just less orange. I will try to post pics of the results.

Where can I find dyes like Special Effects and Manic Panic? They sound fun...but not sure if I've seen them around in the store?

You can find Manic Panic at Sally's and Hot Topic... not certain about Special FX.

[bunzfan]

i had mid brown hair with a semi permerent in but was worried it would send me orangy i want a burgandy colour so i went for a shop dye, but is it difficult to do? could i next time put henna over hair coloured with the below

http://images.chemistdirect.co.uk/images/productimages/large/schwarzkopf_poly_color_tint_mahogany_71_11452.jpg

[SharkDisco]

I used to use Clairol's semi-permanent dye over the top of my hennaed hair to tone down the orange, and I loved the combination. It would make my hair ridiculously soft and shiny. I did it for years and my hair was the happiest it has every been. I didn't find that the dye washed out any faster than it did before I used henna. I only stopped doing this because I'm coming in really gray and my gray hairs are really dye resistant : (

[SharkDisco]

Oh, and also, I've managed to stain both my bathroom sink and tiles with semi-permanent dye, so I don't see why the dye wouldn't just stain the henna in your hair. The idea of it just sliding right off hennaed hair is a bit silly :)

[little_cherry]

Oh, and also, I've managed to stain both my bathroom sink and tiles with semi-permanent dye, so I don't see why the dye wouldn't just stain the henna in your hair. The idea of it just sliding right off hennaed hair is a bit silly :)
Nah, it's not silly, actually...Henna leaves a resin coating on the hair which makes colouring a lot more difficult than on virgin hair...also the bathroom sink and tiles are made of different material than hair...it's not really fair to compare the two.. ;)

[rhosyn_du]

What I've done to get a cooler toned red is use a bit of red wine as part of the liquid for mixing my henna, then add a dark cool-toned red deposit-only dye like Manic Panic or Special Effects into the henna paste right before application. It doesn't come out as vivid as putting deposit-only dye over the henna, but it's way less time and mess.

dropinthebucket, does Elumen bleed at all? I've been thinking of putting a couple of black streaks in, but I want something that won't bleed and stain the hair around the streaks when I wash.

[luthien_belewen]

Ok, so I henna'ed yesterday, and it hasn't fully oxidized yet, but I can already tell a difference. It is a much richer red! (also, I am very happy with my length right now, I've been taking supplements, and my hair seems fuller and longer just slightly ^_^)

Pics:
before (in a similar lighting): http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/VEMikeHQPw5QPp2S-M5TBg?feat=directlink
most recent henna (yesterday) still has yet to oxidize:http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/LesYWMhtBrAKSYmozdrd6A?feat=directlink
http://picasaweb.google.com/andihenry/HairPics#5504883373529329682natural light (sorry there was no sunlight, we're experiencing a week of clouds and rain!)http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/oM4Pce_WMhIWCw5ykWAO7Q?feat=directlink
http://picasaweb.google.com/andihenry/HairPics#5504883396850258018artificial light w/ flash http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ZBjHisjXFmsD3fDdZqQFPg?feat=directlink
http://picasaweb.google.com/andihenry/HairPics#5504883406249195954artificial light w/out flash http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/AdAb84Y4ghr3wfduk_4dkg?feat=directlink
I don't know if the shade is all that different than it was, but definitely deeper and richer. Can't wait for it to darken in the next few days ^_^

[earthymamawitch]

Two hours strikes me as a remarkably short amount of time. Everything I've read indicates that 6-12 hours is needed for maximum saturation. (many people don't want maximum, obviously, but it seems like the less dye, the more orange-y)

Yeah I always get orange from anything less than 3 hours.

Jenn

[luthien_belewen]

I used to use Clairol's semi-permanent dye over the top of my hennaed hair to tone down the orange, and I loved the combination. It would make my hair ridiculously soft and shiny. I did it for years and my hair was the happiest it has every been. I didn't find that the dye washed out any faster than it did before I used henna. I only stopped doing this because I'm coming in really gray and my gray hairs are really dye resistant : (
What shade did you use? This is the dye that I like to use, but I'm unsure as to which one would be best?

[Heidi_234]

I really love the color in this one: http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo...eat=directlink
Henna loves flash a lot:)
I'm glad you start to enjoy the shade henna gave you, it's lovely.

[aahavaa]

I hennad this week and it's the first time I have left it on for only 3 hours as opposed to 6 or more as I usually do.And its definitely less burgundy than usual..more orangey red.It definitely pays to keep it on for a few hours more if youre looking for cooler burgundyish tones.